The White Way to do it........

You already know (if you have been listening) how much I love white. White for clothes........

This is not me but, yes indeed I would wear this if I had it - not sure where I would go in this but I love it. And if I lived way up north I would wear..........

these, on a very cold day.

Mademoiselle Mermaid on Etsy
How about these?

I know where to get this - Chadwicks, and I hope to order it if I can find a good discount code. I will need a short jacket to go with it. I never go sleeveless with my old arms. White is my best color to wear.

I also love lots of white for decorating. Like this pillow.

Some times it is all about texture, as much as color.

I thought I was the only one who had made an all white yo-yo throw. I had never seen an all white one  until last week I saw one on pinterest.

Someday I am going to line my yo-yo throw.  It took me so long to make enough yo-yos for this thing that once I got it big enough I "threw" it and never picked it up again to line it.  When I do line it guess what color it will be? Yes, white.

My white kitchen pendant light.

Again about style and texture.

You have already seen me show many white dishes. White plates are the very best for displaying food to its best. Except, of course, if the food is white you may want to use a color.

Looking at this picture now I wish I had put a pink rose in each cup - would have been a more pleasing picture or one laying on the cloth.

This is my latest white dish. Isn't it pretty? It was just given to me by a best friend. It was her mothers and my friend wanted me to have something from her mother. Note to Carrie: see that Sarah gets this back sometime.

I have enjoyed having this white olive oil jug here by my stove. I need to get some oil in it and actually start using it!  What else is white good for.........

Plants in the garden.  This one is starting to bloom. There was a time that I didn't realize that caladiums bloomed.

White is great for.......

.....arrangements.  Either with or without other colors.

Why I don't bring flowers inside more is beyond my understanding.  It took about ten minutes to gather these and have them in the jar. I have come to love this flower, the common periwinkle.  It performs so well in our hot sun all summer and self seeds so they are a constant blessing. Even if they get frozen you can be sure they will show up again.  I like to make a loop out of a plant blade to use in arrangements.  This one is from the variegated flax lily.

I mistakenly put this one on here and was about to delete it then thought I would leave it and show you how I keep the loops looped.  See the paper clip just above the rim of the jar? All the other ones are down in and don't show.  Another thing wrong with this arrangement is that you should never have leaves below the water.  They cause the water to not stay fresh for one thing.

O.k. I could go on and on and show many more white things but I think I have made the point that white is GOOD.  White is elegant, simple, soothing, quiet, beautiful, interesting and serene.  White can be dressed up and dressed down. Don't get me wrong, I do like some color but, not so much that I am shouted at all the time!

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I hope to start my routine back with at least two posts a week.  As always thank you so much for looking.

Life After Oral Surgery.....

.......I am thinking I need to get something on here or you all will think I'm gone for good. I had two hours of surgery and started to the car and had to hurry back to the chair because of excessive bleeding and stayed thirty more minutes for applied pressure and then one more stitch. I sure am glad it is over and would not want to do it again but I have gotten along quite well after coming home. I haven't been taking many pictures in the last week but.........

.......got a few shots from the sofa, through the glass door and screen on the porch.  These guys helped entertain me when I didn't feel like doing much.

The birds and squirrels were very active out there.

These goofy woodpeckers are enough to keep your mind off of your troubles. He is leaning back ckecking out the little tit mouse on top.

He really has a red head but is not the one called the red-headed wood pecker.

The cardinals are so much more graceful and mild-mannered.

The squirrels cannot get to the seed but it sure doesn't keep them from trying - time after time.

My friend Lynda brought me this large, pretty, creamy white magnolia from the tree in her yard.

She also brought this pear soap and cute dish along with a very large baked to prefection potato with toppings. It was so good - one of the best I have had in years.

I still can't chew anything much at all and am beginning to wonder if I ever will again!  It will just have been a week tomorrow so I guess it is too soon to get discouraged. Yesterday I tried to make one more plate of soft food look tempting. It didn't work!  I would love to have a big bag of potato chips or better yet a big juicy steak!

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Garden Update.....

........Things are looking pretty good and I have several things blooming .  Some aren't as full as I would like to see them but I guess I am asking for perfection. I won't be showing everything, just chose a few for this post.

This blue salvia has grown very tall.

Thunbergia is also tall but isn't producing very many flowers so far.

                 The bell shaped blossom is so vivid in color.  I want to see a lot of them all at once!

I like seeing my British crown in the background.

The peace lilies are blooming good.

Sweet potato vine has come back good and is finally getting rid of freeze damage.

Nice color on this lantana too.  Butterflies love it.

I am beginning to see baby ones of this macho fern coming up several places.  I have been trying for years to get plants to naturalize and fill in bare spots.  I am more encouraged this spring than any time before.  Several things have decided to spread.

This calibrachoa had declined but has made a good comeback.  I guess it pays to use liquid fertilizer on certain plants!

I forgot to get a picture of this Florida dogwood (mock orange) until it had dropped most of its blossoms.  It did not bloom as full this year anyhow.

I nearly always have the enjoyment of some type of wildlife when I am in the yard.  This time it was a pair of brown doves.  I didn't get a good picture of the mate.  You can be sure if you see one of these that a second is nearby.

The caladiums are starting to fill in some bare spots.  I sure wish they could stay year round.

                                                                 This is one of my favorites.

This Easter cactus tried but it did not quite make it to be in full bloom for Easter.  I didn't know there was an Easter cactus until my son brought this one to me last year in full bloom. It is a bit more upright than the Christmas cactus.

I was so excited when I discovered last week that I have a baby pineapple growing!  I almost got rid of the plant because it had gotten so bad looking but I decided to trim it up and give it a chance to pull through. I am so glad that I did.

Hopefully we can watch this fruit mature together. I think it takes a good while so we will just patiently watch.

All in a Days Time.......

.......I have been wanting to share a few pictures that were made throughout the day on Saturday. My daughter is a wedding planner and runs her company called Destination Occasion in Orlando.  I am her assistant when she needs me.  She was the coordinator of a vow renewal service for a couple from England at the beautiful Omni Champions Gate Resort in South Orlando.

The service was planned for mid-morning but we showed up early to receive the flowers from the florist and meet the Gentleman who was also arriving early from a villa where they stayed the night. The couple and their small party of guests had only arrived from England the night before. The service took place in the back resort grounds within a small garden/gazebo area.  So, we arrived in the garden in the early morning and who was there to meet us.......

.........this little guy.  He stayed in there rolling this big green apple around for fifteen or twenty minutes - plenty long enough for us to get several pictures. What a treat he was for Carrie, myself and the harpist who had also arrived early. He finally got tired of the apple and went hopping on out.

                                                                                Christine MacPhail

Eventually, the flowers, minister, photographer and vow renewal party (five people) all arrived and a beautiful service was conducted.  This sweet husband did the surprise planning for his bride of seventeen years!  He told her there would be a vow renewal and asked her to buy a special dress - she knew little more.  What a nice guy he is!

 After the service was completed and several pictures were taken everyone moved just outside the gazebo where a nice table had been set up with a cake and champagne which had been requested by the husband.  He had even secretly brought from England a Mickey and Minnie bridal figurine that they already had.

So, things were going well until this .........

.......yes, about four feet from the back of the table where the people were standing! It caused a little squirming but it dissappeared into the bushes and was only seen briefly once more!

It is fun to help with the wedding/vow renewals and be able to experience the special time with the couple and their guests. But, my day wasn't finished. After seeing the party off we left and stopped by Checkers (my favorite place for french fries), got some lunch and headed on to Carrie's apartment, loaded both our vehicles with boxes, etc. from two flights up and headed on to the recently purchased house of Carrie and Mark - my first time to see it.  After a lot of looking around and unloading the sports vehicles it was time to hurry to International Foods and get British Easter candy for my English son-in-law and then pick him up from his work. We went to the apartment again, loaded up two more loads, delivered those to the house, unloaded, ran the vacumn, messed around a bit more and it was dinner time.

The new house is in this little country town of Gotha which is the home of a  well-known eating establishment called Yellow Dog Eats. I had never been there but had heard about it. I have got to tell you it is not your ordinary place! The pulled pork and cheese balls and tomatoes with pesto are great and I imagine the other food is too considering how many people this place draws in. The decor.......well............just let me say it is different!  This place also had special greeters.........

She, along with several others, was in the parking lot when we arrived. I think we saw eight all together, just hanging around town.  I love chickens! They were a special addition to my day!

This cute little church is just accross the street. I expect this little town has other picture-worthy things that I hope to check out on another visit. You may see more chicken pictures in the future! I left there and drove the forty-five minutes home.

So, quite a variety all in my day Saturday - you need to remember I am heading towards seventy-three!  I am so blessed to be able to put in this kind of a full, fun day! I was glad I didn't have an Easter meal to cook the next day though!

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I apologize for so many details and long crazy sentences.